Salvia plant named ‘Bumblesnow’

ABSTRACT

A new and distinct cultivar of perennial Salvia plant named ‘Bumblesnow’ characterized by its small white-colored flowers densely arranged in tight verticils, with compact upright habit. Flower stems are heavily-branched with branches closely arranged. ‘Bubblesnow’ has strong vigorous growth rate, small gray-green foliage and is winter-hardy. Salvia ‘Bumblesnow’ is especially useful for landscaping and containerized ornamentals by itself or in combination with other plants.

Botanical denomination: Salvia nemorosa (Linnaeus).

Cultivar designation: ‘Bumblesnow’.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Salvia plant named ‘Bumbleberry’ U.S. Plant patent application Ser. No.15/731,913

Salvia plant named ‘Bumbleblue’ U.S. Plant Pat. No. 30,084

Salvia plant named ‘Bumblesky’ U.S. Plant Pat.t No. 30085

STATEMENT REGARDING PRIOR DISCLOSURES UNDER 37 CFR 1.77(b)(6)

The first public disclosure of the claimed plant, in the form of a sale,was made by Walters Gardens, Inc. on Jul. 9, 2018. Prior to that, onNov. 28, 2017 the claimed plant was displayed as a photograph withoutdescription in a calendar distributed to customers of Walters Gardens,Inc., who obtained the plant and all information relating thereto, fromthe inventor. No plants of Salvia ‘Bumblesnow’ have been sold, in thiscountry or anywhere in the world, nor has any disclosure of the newplant been made, more than one year prior the filing date of thisapplication, and such sale or disclosure within one year was eitherderived directly or indirectly from the inventor.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar ofornamental sage plant hereinafter referred to by the cultivar nameSalvia ‘Bumblesnow’ or as the new plant. The new plant was selected froman insect-pollinated cross between the female parent, an unreleasedproprietary hybrid known only by the breeder code 12-60-3 (not patented)and a sibling of 12-60-3 in May of 2014 at an isolation block at awholesale perennial nursery in Zeeland, Mich. The seeds from the crosswere harvested June of 2014 and the single specific seedling thatdeveloped into the new Salvia was assigned the breeder code 14-27-1 atthe end of the evaluation process at the same nursery in the summer of2015. The first asexual propagation was performed in July of 2016 bybasal cuttings at the same nursery in Zeeland, Mich. ‘Bumblesnow’ hasproven that it is stable and reliably produces true to type plants insuccessive generations of asexual propagation.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Plants of Salvia ‘Bumblesnow’ have not been observed under all possibleenvironmental conditions. The phenotype may vary somewhat withvariations in environment such as temperature, nutrition and lightintensity without, however, any variance in genotype.

Salvia ‘Bumblesnow’ can be most closely compared to ‘Sensation White’(not patented). The new plant is similar in habit, and flower color, butthe new plant is denser with more stems and closer arranged flowers.Comparison with the specific female parent is not possible as the femalewas not retained. Comparison with the possible male parent, is notpossible as the exact male parent is not known or maintained. ‘CrystalBlue’ has similar stem and flower density but the flower color is lightsky blue. ‘Bumbleberry’ has similar size but the flowers are darkfuchsia pink. ‘Bumbleblue’ is slightly taller and the flower color isviolet-blue. ‘Bumblesky’ is slightly taller than the new plant and theflower color is light sky blue. ‘Snow Hill’ (‘Schneehugel’) (notpatented) is taller and looser in habit.

The following characteristics in combination distinguish Salvia‘Bumblesnow’ as a new and distinct cultivar:

-   -   1. Small, strong white-colored flowers densely arranged in tight        verticils;    -   2. Compact rounded habit and stiff, upright, heavily-branched        stems;    -   3. Strong, vigorous and winter-hardy;    -   4. Small, rugose, gray-green foliage.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The photographs of the new plant demonstrate the unique traits and theoverall appearance of Salvia ‘Bumblesnow’. The colors are as accurate asreasonably possible with color reproductions. Variation in ambient lightspectrum, source and direction may cause the appearance of minorvariation in color. The plant used in the photographs was a two-year-oldplant grown in an open, full-sun trial garden at a wholesale perennialnursery in Zeeland, Mich. with supplemental water and fertilizer whenneeded. No stem pinching or plant growth regulators have been used.

FIG. 1 shows the plant habit in full flower in a landscape.

FIG. 2 shows a close-up of the flower scapes with the buds and flowers.

DETAILED BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION

The following descriptions and color references except where commondictionary terms are used are based on the 2015 edition of The RoyalHorticultural Society Colour Chart Salvia ‘Bumblesnow’ has not beenobserved under all possible environments. The phenotype may varyslightly with different growing environments such as temperature, light,fertility, soil pH, moisture and plant maturity levels, but without anychange in the genotype. The following observations and size descriptionsare based on two-year-old plants growing in an outdoor, full-sun, trialgarden at a wholesale perennial nursery in Zeeland, Mich. Plants weregiven supplemental water and fertilizer but no pinching or plant growthregulators were used.

-   Botanical classification: Salvia netnorosa (Linnaeus);-   Parentage: Female or seed parent is the unreleased non-patented    proprietary hybrid known as 12-60-3; 12-60-3 is hybrid seedling    selection from Salvia ‘Crystal Blue’ U.S. Plant Pat. No. 26,344; the    male or pollen parent was a sibling of 12-60-3;-   Plant habit: Winter-hardy herbaceous perennial; multi-stemmed,    compact, with basal and cauline foliage, and flowers in several    tightly arranged verticils on heavily-branched upright racemes    displayed above foliage; flowering in heavily-branched panicles to    about 30.0 cm tall and about 36.5 cm wide at the fullest point about    18.0 cm above soil; cauline foliage extends about two-thirds of the    way up the flowering stems;-   Propagation: By herbaceous shoot tip cuttings; time to produce a    rooted stems about two weeks;-   Growth rate: Rapid, vigorous, finishing in from a 25 mm plug to    flower in one-gallon pot in about 10 to 12 weeks, and flowering in a    one-gallon pot from a dormant bare-root one-year-old plant in about    6 to 8 weeks;-   Root description: Fine, well-branched; color dependent on age and    soil type, from cream to dark tan in color;-   Foliage: Opposite; simple; slightly rugose; ovate; glabrous to    sparsely puberulent abaxial and glabrous adaxial; acute apex and    base cordate to rounded; margin crenate; leaf blades about 6.5 cm    long and 3.6 cm across, decreasing in size distally; average about    4.8 cm long and 2.2 cm across; foliage is not variegated;-   Foliage fragrance: Faint sage fragrance;-   Foliage color: Mature adaxial surface nearest RHS 137A, mature    abaxial surface between RHS 147B and RHS 146A; expanding adaxial    base nearest RHS 144A and distally nearest RHS 137B, expanding    abaxial between RHS 138A and RHS 138B;-   Venation: Reticulate; impressed on adaxial side and ribbed on    abaxial side; puberulent abaxial and glabrous adaxial;-   Vein color: Mature adaxial midrib nearest RHS 145D with main and    secondary veins nearest RHS 193A near midrib and becoming nearest    RHS 137A distally, and mature abaxial midrib and main veins nearest    RHS 146D; expanding adaxial midrib nearest RHS 145D with secondary    veins nearest RHS 194A and expanding abaxial midrib RHS 145D and    secondary veins between RHS 148C and RHS 148D;-   Petiole: On basal foliage only; concavo-convex, ciliolate along    margin and sparsely puberulent abaxial and adaxial surfaces; to    about 3.6 cm long and 3.5 mm wide at base, average 2.8 cm long and    3.0 mm wide at base;-   Petiole color: Adaxial center nearest RHS 145C and margins nearest    RHS 137C; abaxial center nearest RHS 145C and margins nearest RHS    137C;-   Stems: Quadrangular; pubescent, to 7.0 cm long before flowers and    4.0 mm across at base;-   Stem color: Nearest RHS 138A;-   Nodes: Eight before flowering central flower stem; average internode    length 2.2 cm; color same as stem;-   Flower: Perfect; bilabiate; zygomorphic; verticillate with flowering    generally beginning at lower verticils and advancing up the scape,    not all flowers at same verticil opening at the same time; with    lower lip prOjected downwardly about 30 degrees below horizontal and    hood petal upwardly at about 30 degrees angle above horizontal;    self-cleaning, petals not persistent; flowering beginning late    spring for about four weeks and repeating if initial scapes removed;-   Inflorescence description: Total length about 18 cm tall, flowering    in upper 11 cm and branching to about 8 cm wide; average internode    distance in flowering portion about 4.0 mm; number of flowers per    node or verticil about 10, decreasing distally;-   Flower longevity: About four days on the plant;-   Flower fragrance: None detected;-   Flower buds one to two days prior to anthesis: Ellipsoidal with    narrow basal tube, rounded apex; exposed petals puberulent; calyx    carinate and micro puberulent; about 6.5 mm long, 2.5 mm tall and    1.5 mm wide;-   Flower bud color: Exposed petals nearest RHS 145D; calyx nearest RHS    138A;-   Flowers size: About 13.0 mm long from base of calyx to tip of    exserted style, 6.5 mm tall and 5.5 mm wide; clustered at verticils    with about six flowers per verticil;-   Petals: Bilabiate corolla; upper hood projecting upwardly to about    45 degrees from horizontal and lower labium drooping producing an    angle between the two petals of about 60 degrees;-   Hood (upper) petal: Slightly arcuate to falcate in distal half;    vertically conduplicate in distal 7.0 mm, with emarginate apex and    basal 6.0 mm fused into tube 2.0 mm diameter at base and 3.0 mm    diameter at petal separation; puberulent abaxial, glabrous adaxial;    about 9.0 mm long, 3.0 mm tall and 1.0 mm across;-   Labium (lower) petal: Abaxial puberulent, glabrous adaxial;    consisting of three apical lobes, two upwardly projecting lateral    lobes about 3.0 mm long and 1.5 mm wide at base, each lobe with    rounded apex; one central, obdeltoid, distally involute lobe, about    3.5 mm long 5.5 mm wide with broadly rounded apex; about 9.0 mm long    fused into tube in basal 6.0 mm, 5.5 mm wide at the widest portion    and 2.5 mm tall;-   Petal color: Abaxial hood distally between RHS NN155A and RHS    NN155B, proximally nearest RHS NN155D; adaxial hood nearest RHS    NN155C; labium central lobe adaxial and abaxial nearest RHS NN155D    with longitudinal center nearest RHS NN155C; labium side lobes    adaxial and abaxial nearest RHS NN155D; fused base abaxial proximal    region nearest RHS NN155C, adaxial tube nearest RHS NN155C;-   Androecium: Two, with diminutive trigger mechanism; fused with    labium, contained within hood petal;    -   -   Filaments.—Two; adnate about 4.0 mm from base of labium            petal and curved downward inside hood petal; glabrous; about            1.0 mm long and about 0.2 mm diameter; color nearest RHS            NN155C.        -   Anther.—Glabrous, ellipsoidal; about 1.5 mm long and about            0.5 mm diameter; longitudinal, dorsifixed; color blend            nearest RHS 158C.        -   Pollen.—Not observed.        -   Trigger mechanism; About 1.0 mm long, curved; color nearest            RHS NN155B.-   Gynoecium: One, exserted; curved around inside of hood petal; total    about 14.0 nm long;    -   -   Style.—About 11.0 mm long and less than 0.5 mm diameter;            color nearest RHS NN155D.        -   Stigma.—Bifid and curved in the terminal 2.0 mm; apex            pointed; color nearest RHS NN155D.        -   Ovary.—Superior; about 1.0 mm diameter; color nearest RHS            145A.        -   Fruit.—One to four nutlets per flower; ellipsoidal to            spherical; about 1.5 mm diameter; color nearest RHS 202A.-   Calyx: Five sepals; three upper and two lower, campanulate, apex    acute; fused in basal 3.0 mm; persistent; tube about 5.5 mm long,    4.0 mm tall and 3.0 mm wide; lower cleft about 2.5 mm deep between    lobes and upper and lower set; upper set of three fused to closer    than 0.5 mm of apex;-   Sepal color: Abaxial base nearest RHS 144A with veins and dorsal    portion nearest RHS 138A; adaxial base nearest RHS 145A and veins of    nearest RHS 138A;-   Bracts: Each verticil subtended by two opposite bracts; apex    acuminate, base truncate, shape nearly cordate; margin entire,    ciliolate, and glabrous above and below; bract size up to 5.0 mm    long and 5.0 mm wide, decreasing distally; color of both surfaces    nearest RHS 137A near perimeter and center nearest RHS 145D;-   Peduncles: Quadrangular in cross section, strong; mostly upright;    flowering in peduncle up to 18.0 cm tall and 8.0 cm across; finely    puberulent; heavily branched with opposite branches at about 50 to    60 degrees above horizontal at the four nodes below flowers on    central stem; branches to about 10.0 cm long and 2.0 mm across;    average space between flowers on central stem about 1.5 mm; about    290 flowers per inflorescence; verticils average about 6.0 mm apart    closer distally;-   Peduncle color: Nearest RHS 138B in upper and lower regions;-   Pedicels: Cylindrical; puberulent; about 2.0 mm long and 0.5 mm    diameter; horizontal to about 30 degrees above horizontal;-   Pedicel color: Nearest RHS 146D;-   Disease and pest resistance: Resistance to diseases and pests beyond    that common to Salvia has not been noted, but the new plant is not    commonly browsed by Cervinea or Oryctolagus;-   Growth recommendations: Plants of Salvia ‘Bumblesnow’ perform best    with adequate moisture and good drainage but are fairly drought    tolerant once established; hardy from USDA zone 3 to 8.

It is claimed:
 1. A new and distinct perennial Salvia plant named‘Bumblesnow’ as herein described and illustrated useful for landscapingas a specimen plant or en masse.